Barack Obama has weighed into the racially-charged court case that has divided
America by comparing himself to Trayvon Martin, the unarmed black teenager
shot dead by George Zimmerman.

Speaking for the first time since the neighbourhood watch volunteer was acquitted of murder, Mr Obama spoke in highly personal terms as he reflected on his remark last year that if he had a son, he would look like Trayvon.

Drawing an even more direct connection to the 17-year-old, he said: “Another way of saying that is, Trayvon Martin could’ve been me, 35 years ago.”

Mr Obama, in his most emotional and powerful words on race since becoming President, made an unscheduled appearance in the White House briefing room where he talked for 20 minutes without a teleprompter.

He described his own experiences of racial profiling, which Trayvon’s family said that Mr Zimmerman did the night he shot him dead after he told police that the teen was acting suspiciously.

“There are very few African-American men who haven’t had the experience of being followed in a department store ... that includes me,” Mr Obama said.

“There are very few African-American men who haven’t had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. That happened to me, at least before I was a senator.

“There are very few African-Americans who haven’t had the experience of getting on an elevator and a woman clutching her purse nervously and holding her breath until she had a chance to get off. That happens often.”

The president has sought to walk a fine line on issues of race since becoming the first black president, often to the frustration of African-American leaders.

Despite that reticence, his public silence for nearly a week had surprised some aides, especially as he had privately expressed his strong sentiments about the case.

His words reportedly elicited cheers and fist pumps from staff members, according to the Politico website.

Mr Obama also backed the calls by Eric Holder, his Attorney General, for a review of controversial “stand your ground” self-defence laws to head off violent confrontations.

“If Trayvon Martin was of age and he was armed, could he have ’stood his ground’ on that sidewalk?” Mr Obama said.

He added: “If a white male teen was involved in the same kind of scenario, from top to bottom, both the outcome and the aftermath might have been different.” He called for some “soul-searching” but he also expressed concerns about politicians and pundits embarking on a “national conversation on race”, as some have called for at protests since the verdict.

He also said he does not want the nation to “lose sight” of the progress that has been made on race relations.

“It doesn’t mean we’re in a post-racial society or that racism has been eliminated,” he said, but the situation was improving.

Mr Obama urged Americans to respect the jury’s verdict in the trial, but some conservative commentators accused the president of playing racial politics.

Mr Holder’s justice department is investigating whether to press federal hate crime charges against Mr Zimmerman, but legal experts say it is extremely unlikely that they will be able to find the evidence for such prosecution.

Trayvon’s parents said they were “deeply honoured and moved” by Mr Obama’s comments.

“What touches people is that our son, Trayvon Benjamin Martin, could have been their son,” Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin said in a statement.

“President Obama sees himself in Trayvon and identifies with him. This is a beautiful tribute to our boy.” Miss Fulton and Mr Martin, who have urged protesters to peacefully since the verdict, said they shared Mr Obama’s commitment to “an open and difficult dialogue”.